Excavations uncover Lombard necropolis near Udine

Woman's tomb at the center of the burials

(ANSA) - Cividale, February 13 - Graves unearthed in the
northern Italian region of Friuli over the last several days
held objects belonging to ancient Lombard warriors.

Archaeologists excavated the tombs of men, women and
children, some of which showed signs of past intrusions.

Spears, swords, knives and bags containing coins and other
iron objects were found in the men's tombs while combs and clips
were found in the women's.

In most cases, ceramic vases had been placed at the foot of
the graves.
At the center of the necropolis was the tomb of a veiled
woman with a bronze clasp pinning the cover to her head and a
gold-embossed cross placed on her chest.
The 30 tombs compose one of the largest Lombard cemeteries
discovered to date, including those unearthed in the late 19th
and early 20th centuries said to contain Lombard aristocracy and
other graves found nearby in the 1960s.

Local authorities have set up surveillance in the
excavations as archaeologists continue to recover objects for
transfer to the town's National Archaeological Museum.